
The City Planning Commission at the borough-based jails public hearing on July 10, 2019. Image Credit: CPC
City reduced projected number of beds to 4,600 but did not amend application at time of hearing. On July 10, 2019, the City Planning Commission held a public hearing for the City’s application for four borough-based jails as a part of the City’s plan to shut down Rikers Island. The application proposes four new jails at 124-125 White Street in Manhattan, 745 East 141st Street in the Bronx, 126-02 82nd Avenue in Queens, and at 275 Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. The new jails will allow the City to shut down operations on Rikers Island and work toward the City’s goal of reducing the City’s jail population. For CityLand’s prior coverage of the proposed project, click here. (more…)

Map of proposed project site for the Bronx jail at 745 East 141st Street. Image Credit: NYC CPC
The four jails are set to replace Rikers island by 2027. On March 25, 2019, the City Planning Commission certified the City’s application for four borough-based jails as a part of the City’s plan to shut down Rikers Island. The four jails – in Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, and Brooklyn – will have a total of 5,748 beds and a capacity of 5,000 inmates. The additional 748 beds will be used to account for taking occupied cells out of service for repairs, separating inmates based on gender or sentenced versus non-sentenced or other space needs. (more…)

The city plans to use a vacant building on the Jacobi Hospital campus to house recently released detainees from Rikers who have significant health conditions that disqualify them from shelter placement. Image Credit: Google Maps.
With approximately 70 studios, the development will house patients with medical needs like congestive heart failure and end-stage renal disease after they leave jail. On August 19, 2022, the Department of Housing Preservation and Development (HPD) and NYC Health + Hospitals announced “Just Home,” a housing project in Morris Park, Bronx geared towards formerly incarcerated New Yorkers. (more…)

Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine speaks at the 179th CityLaw Breakfast. Image Credit: CityLand.
Today, May 13, 2022, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine spoke at the 179th CityLaw Breakfast. Borough President Levine spoke on “Manhattan’s Recovery.” Professor Ross Sandler, Director of the Center for New York City Law provided opening remarks. Matt Gewolb, Associate Dean and Vice President for Institutional Strategy and General Counsel at New York Law School, led a closing discussion with Borough President Levine. This Breakfast was sponsored by ConEdison, Greenberg Traurig, and Verizon. This was the thirteenth virtual CityLaw Breakfast as in-person events are not feasible at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. (more…)

Meetings like this City Planning Commission public hearing that were moved to safely accommodate a larger crowd are an example of how public bodies can adapt to safely hold in-person hearings post pandemic. Image Credit: CityLand
On June 23, 2021 Governor Andrew Cuomo announced that the state’s COVID-19 emergency orders, which are set to expire today will not be renewed. One of the provisions within the emergency order adjusted the requirements of the Open Meetings Law to allow public hearings to be held remotely via telephone or video conference or other similar service. As of Friday, June 25th, the Open Meetings Law will again require all meetings to be held in-person. (more…)